A new film highlighting Yellowstone National Park’s natural wonders will premiere on April 22 in the Hager Auditorium at the Museum of the Rockies, according to Montana State University. The documentary, titled “Yellowstone Wild Through Time,” was created by filmmaker Carol Amore with scientific guidance from Roland Hatzenpichler, director of MSU’s Thermal Biology Institute and associate professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
The event is free and open to the public. The film aims to provide an immersive visual and musical journey through Yellowstone’s ecosystems, wildlife, weather patterns, predator-prey interactions, and geothermal features. Amore said she wanted to make science accessible for all visitors: “Roland and I are collaborating to make science interesting for people, even if they don’t speak English, which are half of the people who visit Yellowstone. We wanted to make something that was inspiring and uplifting and makes people curious.”
The Thermal Biology Institute at MSU consists of a multidisciplinary team focused on understanding unique thermal environments in Yellowstone National Park. These environments include hot springs colored by microbes known as extremophiles. According to Hatzenpichler, TBI’s long-term goal is “to understand how those organisms respond and adapt to the unique physical and chemical features of geothermal environments.” TBI also participates in K-12 outreach programs as well as continuing education courses for teachers funded by the National Science Foundation.
Montana State University leads in research funding within Montana with annual expenditures exceeding $288 million according to its official website. The university also ranks among the top 5 percent of global universities per the Center for World University Rankings according to its official website, enrolls about 17,165 students split between residents and nonresidents according to its official website, operates as Montana’s land-grant university focusing on research, education and community outreach according to its official website, contributes through volunteer efforts aimed at enhancing lives according to its official website, and extends influence across Montana as a land-grant institution according to its official website.
After screening the film—which received several awards from Cannes Film Festival—Amore will discuss her creative process while Hatzenpichler will talk about recent scientific discoveries made in Yellowstone’s thermal features. He will address his group’s identification of two new microbes that may help develop climate change mitigation methods or provide insight into possible extraterrestrial life.
Hatzenpichler said he hopes this collaboration will further strengthen ties between MSU’s Thermal Biology Institute and Yellowstone National Park Service: “We hope this will be a great opportunity to continue working with the park and maybe update some of these poster exhibits, which are seen by (nearly) 5 million visitors annually.” Registration for seats is available online.